News & Analysis as of

Trademark Registration Trademark Ownership Trademark Trial and Appeal Board

Knobbe Martens

One Name, Two Claims: Prince’s Estate and Apollonia Clash Over Trademark Rights

Knobbe Martens on

Bono, Madonna, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Eminem, Drake, Cher, Sting, Lorde, Flea, Adele, Bjork, Seal, Pink: these celebrities all share the same elite status of fame to be known by a single name. But the standalone celebrity name...more

Snell & Wilmer

Fourth Circuit Holds Additional Evidence Needed to Determine Whether “MOKE” is Generic

Snell & Wilmer on

The Fourth Circuit recently vacated and remanded a finding that the term MOKE is generic for certain low-speed, open-air vehicles. This case originated in the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) where Moke America LLC...more

McDermott Will & Schulte

Beach Buggy Battle: Stipulation Insufficient to Establish Trademark Distinctiveness

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit found that a district court does not need to accept both parties’ stipulation that a mark is distinctive but instead is permitted to make an evidentiary inquiry in determining...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

Beams of Light Fail to Strike a Chord with the Board

The Guitar Hotel in Hollywood, Florida is a hotel in the shape of the body of a guitar, with six lit-up “strings” running vertically up the surface of the building. At 7 pm daily, the hotel conducts a music and light show...more

Willcox & Savage

Trump Too Small: The Lanham Act Names Clause

Willcox & Savage on

To guide potential trademark owners and to foster strong protection for trademarks under U.S. law, the Lanham Act; 15 U.S.C. §1052, defines the types of trademarks and service which marks can be registered by whittling away...more

Willcox & Savage

Trademark Board Finds No Sovereign Immunity to Opposition Proceeding

Willcox & Savage on

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) ruled that a state agency has no sovereign immunity to a trademark opposition proceeding. Mountain Gateway Order, Inc. v....more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

New Ruling Expands Trademark Owners’ Rights in Retail Space

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Trademark lawyers are often asked: “What’s the difference between a trademark and a service mark?” In general, a trademark refers to a brand name used in connection with goods, while a service mark is one that is used in...more

Knobbe Martens

Minority Owners of a Trademark Registrant, Who neither Use nor Possess Ownership Rights in the Mark, Cannot Seek Cancellation of...

Knobbe Martens on

Appeal from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. Summary: Parties that own minority shares in the trademark registrant, but do not separately use or possess an ownership right in...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® – April 2024: Trademarks are for Parents, Not Children

Children are all too familiar with parents telling them that everything they own is actually mom and dads. And as frustrating as this is to hear as a child, a recent opinion from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® – April 2024

Welcome to the April 2024 issue of Sterne Kessler’s MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss why it’s important for businesses to think critically about who they are listing as their trademark owners, how the TTAB...more

ArentFox Schiff

Behind the Stage: The TTAB's “Non-Performing Band Member” Ruling on Disputed Ownership of SPLIT DECISION Trademark

ArentFox Schiff on

The world of music often sees as much drama in the courtroom as on the stage. One fight that frequently results in protracted, expensive, and bitter legal disputes is over ownership of a band or group name....more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Federal Circuit’s Determination on Whether Fraudulent Conduct in Obtaining Incontestable Status Warrants the Mark’s Cancellation

In Great Concepts, LLC, v. Chutter, Inc., the Federal Circuit decided on whether the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board can cancel a trademark based on the inclusion of false statements in a declaration to obtain an...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - October 2023: A Limit to Cancel Culture? Federal Circuit Finds Fraud in Connection with Section 15 Declaration...

In 2021, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board cancelled Great Concepts, LLC’s trademark registration for the mark DANTANNA’S for restaurant services under Section 14, after finding that counsel for the Registrant committed...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - October 2023

Thank you for reading the October 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the Federal Circuit’s recent case considering the scope of the USPTO’s authority to cancel registrations...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - September 2023

Thank you for reading the September 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the significant revisions to the FTC's guidelines for endorsements and examine the benefits of design...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - August 2023: Keeping It Real: The USPTO Implements New Trademark Applicant Address Verification Process

As part of its ongoing efforts to improve and maintain the accuracy of the Trademark Register, and combat trademark scams and bot-filed trademark applications, the USPTO has revised examination procedures for reviewing...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - August 2023: How to Lose a Mark in 3 Ways – Part 3: Naked Licensing

Trademarks help brand owners build and communicate their brand’s reputation and value with the relevant public. Once that valuable goodwill is linked between a mark and the owner’s products and services, trademark owners can...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - August 2023

Thank you for reading the August 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we conclude our series that explores ways to lose trademark rights with an examination of naked licensing, discuss a...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - July 2023: How to Lose a Mark in 3 Ways – Part 2: Genericide

One of the signs of a healthy trademark is a certain level of distinctiveness. Distinctiveness is related to consumers’ love and recognition of a mark as an indicator of a product’s source, such that consumers trust the mark...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - July 2023

Thank you for reading the July 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we continue our three-part series that closely examines ways to lose trademark rights with a discussion of genericide. We...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Federal Circuit Turns the Burden on Trademark Owners to Prove Identical Third-Party Marks Are Not in Use

Fenwick & West LLP on

In Spireon, Inc. v. Flex Ltd., No. 2022-1578 (Fed. Cir. June 26, 2023), the Federal Circuit took a surprising turn in which it held that it is the trademark owner’s burden to prove that identical third-party marks put forth...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - April 2023: “Reasonable Investigation” Practice Tips for Trademark Expungement and Reexamination Proceedings

As the 1.5 year anniversary of the Trademark Modernization Act’s implementation approaches in June, the United States Patent and Trademark Office now offers an array of helpful guidance on the requirements, format, and even...more

Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery LLP

Federal Circuit Clarifies Standard for Tacking Doctrine in Trademark Applications

On April 4, in Charles Bertini v. Apple Inc., the Federal Circuit held that a trademark applicant cannot establish priority for every good or service in its application merely because it has priority through tacking in a...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

How Lizzo Helped the USPTO Identify the Source of “100% THAT B---H”

Recently, Melissa Jefferson, known professionally as Lizzo, took on the USPTO in a battle to establish trademark rights to a popular lyric from her 2017, Billboard-topping song Truth Hurts. The phrase, “100% That B—h”, which...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

The Prior Registration Puzzle: Overcoming Registration Refusals Based on Intervening Third-Party Marks

It’s a frustrating situation, to be sure, but fortunately you’re not without options. One of those options is arguing to the Trademark Office that your client’s Anchor Registration should entitle it to registration of its...more

37 Results
 / 
View per page
Page: of 2

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.
- hide
- hide